Posts tagged Education

Professional Development Opportunities this Summer

Published by Lisa McDonald on 29 May 2014 in Bioinformatics, Education, Genomic Medicine, Microbial & Environmental Genomics and Uncategorized.

This summer we are offering two professional development workshops: GenomeSolver and Bioinformatics: Unlocking Life through Computation. Both explore bioinformatics, microbial diversity and the implementation in the undergradauate or high school classrooms.

The GenomeSolver workshop trains faculty on genome analysis. Workshop attendees will learn about general methodologies, standards, and processes used to annotate and analyze microbial genomes. The workshop contents will be available to aid the faculty in developing teaching modules. In addition, extensive documentation on methodologies and tools will be available via the online environment created for this project. On online web portal Genome Solver (www.genomesolver.org) will be a virtual space for development and sustaining of community. Genome Solver will assist faculty with technical issues and curricular design, as well as an online environment for the ongoing sharing of information including publication of student work.

http://www.weizhongli-lab.org/cms/education/prodev/genome-solver-annotation-workshops

Bioinformatics: Unlocking Life through Computation is a new opportunity for high school teachers. Genomics and biotechnology are valuable tools in our quest to understand life and nature. However, introducing the science classroom to the computational and mathematical underpinnings of biology can be challenging. The goal of this workshop is to introduce a curriculum for mathematics and science education in the area of genomics (with a focus on the fascinating world of microbes). Educators will be introduced to the various analysis and computational challenges that arise in this discipline. Workflow examples illustrating comparative genomic analysis will be made available through the JCVI Metagenomics Report (METAREP) software infrastructure. The eventual aim is for the educational material to be integrated with local high school curricula requirements to expose students to both hypothesis-driven and discovery-based science.

http://www.weizhongli-lab.org/cms/education/prodev/bioinformatics-unlocking-life-through-computation/

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The 2014 Summer Internship Application is Open and Announcing the Genomics Scholar Program

Published by Lisa McDonald on 19 December 2013 in Education, Genomic Medicine, Infectious Disease, JCVI, Microbial & Environmental Genomics, Plant Genomics, Sequencing, Synthetic Biology & Bioenergy and Uncategorized.

The 2014 Summer Internship Application is now open. Last summer, we hosted 49 interns from a pool of 424 applicants. They presented their research in the First Annual Summer Internship Poster Sessions held in San Diego and Rockville. The posters were judged by a team of volunteer JCVI scientists and the poster sessions were open to all employees, interns and their guests to share what great work they all participated in this summer.

 

 

2013 Intern Poster Session

2013 Intern Poster Session

We are also excited to announce the new Genomics Scholar Program beginning this summer and also accepting applications. The Genomic Scholar Program (GSP) is a targeted research experience program to community college students in Rockville. Our program incorporates multiple avenues of support for students through the research experience with the Principal Investigators as mentors, and supplemental professional development provided by the JCVI. Additionally, selected students will have the opportunity to participate in undergraduate research conferences.

The GSP is supported by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health under award number R25DK098111.

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JCVI Internship Information for 2013 Is Ready

Published by Lisa McDonald on 4 December 2012 in Education.

We are now accepting applications for the 2013 Summer Internship Program. We are excited to be able to continue to inspire young scientists! Last year, we received 546 applications. Of which, thirty-one interns were selected to work in diverse areas.

 

2012 San Diego Summer Interns

2012 San Diego Summer Interns

 

2012 Rockville Summer Interns

2012 Rockville Summer Interns

 

Some of the intern projects were:

  • Isolation and Characterization of Electricity Generating Bacteria
  • Characterizing the Microbial Population of Rabbit GI Tract
  • Cloning Ureaplasma urealyticum: An Odyssey
  • Comparative Genomics of three isolate strains in the actively serpentinizing Cedars Springs
  • Coronavirus: Amplification of the HE and Spike genes in human coronavirus genomes

The 2013 JCVI Internship Program is open to accept spring and summer applications. The application process includes the submission of a resume, essay and transcripts as one PDF file via our online application site. We do not require letters of recommendation.

Information about the 2013 program can be found at http://www.weizhongli-lab.org/cms/education/internship-program/

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Science Festivals

Published by Lisa McDonald on 2 February 2010 in Education and Microbial & Environmental Genomics.

With spring around the corner (or at least we hope), there are several upcoming science festivals. These festivals are designed to provide students and families opportunities to find out what is happening in local science research institutes, universities and companies. These organizations are expanding the text books beyond our imaginations. These are EXCITING times in science – we are just scratching the surface of understanding the diversity of life on our planet, beginning to understand how to boot up synthetic cell, and how to better care for us and our planet.

SDSA High Tech Fair 2009: Dr. Bretschger and students

We are looking forward to participating in the SDSA High Tech Fair, March 9 & 10. Stop by our booth. It should be easy to find – with a unique sulfur odor coming from the sediment battery Dr. Bretschger created related to her work. At the end of March, we will exhibit with SD Science Festival Expo Day, March 27, which brings together over 150 hands-on science activities and stage performances for people of all ages and interest levels!

Switching coasts, April 25, JCVI will be participating at the Rockville Science Day. Another fun day of hands-on science activities and demonstrations! Look for the Mobile Lab there!!

DiscoverGenomics! Mobile Lab

DiscoverGenomics! Mobile Lab

Finally, this fall, we are excited to participate in the first ever USA Science & Engineering Festival Expo on the National Mall! The Mobile Lab will be there with other labs for a mobile lab CONVOY!! Well, maybe not as security might not like that, but we will be there. Explore science & engineering with hundreds of free, hands-on activities and over 40 science shows on three different stages. The two-day Expo is perfect for teens, children and their families, and anyone with a curious mind who is looking for a weekend of fun and discovery. Build an underwater robot, chat with a Nobel Laureate, explore the science behind the magic of Hogwarts Academy and see a car that drives itself. From bugs to birds, kitchen chemistry to computer games, environmental monitoring to electronic music – the Expo has something for everyone and is completely free of charge. The Expo is the pinnacle event of the inaugural USA Science & Engineering Festival to be held in the greater Washington D.C. area October 10-24, 2010. The USA Science & Engineering Festival is a collaboration of over 500 of the nation’s leading science and engineering organizations. For more information on all Festival events and how you can get involved, visit www.usasciencefestival.org

I hope everyone can make it out to these great events. If you are scientists or have a science-related career, please be sure to get out there and volunteer. National Lab Day has provided a great national portal to volunteer. There are never enough science fair judges, career speakers or mentors, so contact your local school to find out how you can help.

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